Portable carriage



March 3, 1970 L. H. BEST 3,498,412

PORTABLE CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 18, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet l 4 WN M ,fl 4

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FIG. 2

INVENTOR. LEON H. BEST ATTOR N EYS March 3, 1970 1.. H. BEST PORTABLE CARRIAGE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 18, 1968 FIG.6

INVENTOR. LEION H. BEST QM ATTORNEYS March 3, 1970 BEST 3,498,412

PORTABLE CARRIAGE Filed Sept, 18, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 L N & In lg 2 LL & 5 1- w F fi i Um m n-I :i:

Q N t N N 5 v J@ INVENTOR.

LEON H. BEST BY ATTORNEYS March 3, 1970 L. H. BEST 3,498,412

PORTABLE CARRIAGE Filed Sept 18, 1968 S'Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. LEON H. BEST fim/M l/M ATTOR NEYS March 3, 1970 H. sr-zs'r PORTABLE CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 18, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 0 g?RE EFTQ United States Patent Office 3,498,412 Patented Mar. 3, 1970 3,498,412 PORTABLE CARRIAGE Leon H. Best, Galva, Ill., assignor to John H. Best & Sons, Inc., Galva, III., a corporation of Illinois Filed Sept. 18, 1968, Ser. No. 760,443 Int. Cl. E06c 1/00; A471 3/02 U.S. Cl. 182-152 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A collapsible carriage is extendible to afford a ladder and a platform capable of supporting a workman in an elevated position. When collapsed, the carriage is easily movable through doorways or down narrow corridors.

This invention relates to a carriage having caster wheels to facilitate movement of the carriage from one location to another.

Rugs, such as the 9' x 12' size hung on a rug display rack or on pin bars along the wall in an elevated position, are quite difficult to handle when they are to be hung or removed. Of course, this is equally true of other kinds of goods stored in high out-of-the-way locations, and the primary object of the present invention is to enable goods in high, confined locations to be more easily handled in the course of being moved to or from such positions. Another object of the present invention is to enable goods to be moved by, or workmen themselves to use, a carriage, the construction of which presents a side ladder and a top platform which together contribute to a wide, safe, rigid carriage and in which the platform when moved to an inoperative position enables the whole unit to be collapsed into a narrow structure which can be easily wheeled through a narrow doorway, down a narrow corridor, or into or through areas of limited size.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, [by way of illustration, shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principle thereof and what I now consider to be the best mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principles may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1, 2 and 3 are side, top and end elevations, respectively, of a carriage constructed in accordance with the present invention, but in FIG. 2 the platform has been removed;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are side and top elevations, respectively, showing the carriage in its collapsed, folded state and with the platform removed as in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a detail view of one of four swivel joints;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary end elevation of the carriage showing features of the carriage associated with the platform;

FIG. 8 is a detail view showing a support for the platform;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary side elevation at the top of the carriage showing an installed hand rail;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of FIG. 9; a

FIG. 11 is a view similar to FIG. 9 but showing carpet support racks installed; and

FIG. 12 is an end view of FIG. 11.

The carriage 20, FIG. 1, comprises a pair of horizontal stabilizers 21, FIG. 2, each supporting at the opposite ends thereof caster wheels W of which there are four in number. In connection with the description to follow,

structural elements may be understood as secured one to another by welds, unless otherwise specified.

Each stabilizer 21 has a pair of hollow uprights 22, FIG. 1, secured to the top side thereof, and each pair of uprights is joined by horizontal rungs 23, FIG. 4, which together afford a ladder at each end of the assembly. Thus, there is a ladder L1, FIG. 4, at one end and a second ladder L2 at the other end. It will be observed in FIGS. 2 and 3 that the uprights are well spaced inward from the ends of the stabilizers so that a well stabilized structure is afforded.

Horizontal stringers or spacers 25 extend between the uprights 22 as shown in FIG. 1, and the ends of the spacers 25 are connected by swivel joints to the uprights 22 so that the unit may be collapsed or folded as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. To this end, a collar 30, FIG. 6, is slipped onto each upright and its position is maintained by a pair of spacer rings 31 welded to the upright in a spaced relatonship dimensioned to correspond to the axial length of the sleeve 30. The rings 31 on the other hand allow the sleeve 30 to turn freely with respect to the upright 22.

Each swivel sleeve as 30 includes a mounting flange 32 rigid therewith. Each flange 32 has an aperture 33A therein enabling the ends of the spacers 25 to be secured thereto as by bolts. Each side of the ladder assembly is braced by cross braces 35, and the ends of these braces are also bolted to the flange of the swivel sleeve as shown in FIG. 1, resort being had to a second aperture 33B in the flange of each swivel sleeve.

When the unit is properly erected, the horizontal stabilizer members 21, the upright members 22 and the spacer members 25 define, FIG. 2, a right angled parallelogram. When the unit is folded or nested, FIGS. 4 and 5, the members just enumerated afford an acute or oblong parallelogram. Prefeably a stop member 36, FIG. 5, limits the extent to which the sides may be brought next to another. Stop 36 has one end fixed to a lower stringer 25 on one side of the carriage, the free end projecting forward and in alignment with the stringer on the opposite side.

The normal condition represented by the geometry of a right angle parallelogram is maintained by a hinged platform 40 which in its operative position, FIG. 3, braces and rigidifies the sides and endsof the assembly While allowing workmen to stand thereon. The top platform of course may take different configurations, but it is nevertheless so hinged at the top of the unit as to be capable of being swung to an inoperative position as shown by dotted lines in FIG. 3 which enables the whole carriage to be collapsed or folded, FIGS. 4 and 5, for easy movement through narrow passages or down narrow corridors.

Thus the carriage is braced in its normal erected state by a platform 40, FIG. 3. Details of the platform structure will shortly be described, but first it is to be explained that, as shown in FIG. 7, the platform 40 is arranged for extensibility in a vertical direction. To this end, each upright 22 receives in its upper end an extender arm 41 having openings 42 along the length thereof adapted to receive a pin as 45, FIG. 4, conveniently attached to the carriage assembly by a chain 46 suspended from the flange 32 of each of the upper swivel collars 30.

The openings 42 in the extender arms are adapted to be aligned with a related opening 46, FIG. 7, in each upright 22, so that by setting the arm 41 collectively in like extended positions as determined by registry between an opening 46 and an adjusting opening 42, the pins 45 may be inserted into the aligned openings or apertures. This holds or maintains the platform 40 in a selected adjusted position as will be apparent from the description to follow.

The arms 41 at one side of the carriage, FIG. 7, are formed with flanges 41F, and these flanges serve as hinge supports for corresponding flanges as 40F projecting from the rear of the platform 40 as viewed in FIG. 7. The flanges thus afforded are provided with openings for hinge pins by which the platform 40 is articulated to the arms 41 having the flanges 41F.

The platform 40 comprises a top plate 51, FIGS. 7, 9 and 10, and it may be noted that the flanges 40F referred to above are aft extension of angle bars 52 which are secured to the underside of the platform plate 51 at the opposite ends thereof. The angle bars 52 have vertical flanges, and the fore end portions of these flanges are adapted to be neatly received in a slot 55, FIG. 8, presented at the upper end of each of the fore extender arms 41. The slots 55 are afforded by welding or otherwise securing a guide plate 56 to theoutside face of a spacer block 57 rigidly secured as by 'weld or the like to the inside face of the corresponding extender arm 41 as shown in FIG. 8. Preferably the upper edge of each guide plate is bent outwardly at 56B to guide the flanges of the angle bars 52 into the support slots 55.

Thus, when the platform is lowered to operative position, FIG. 3, the narrow vertical edges of the angle bars 52 will repose in the slots 55 and bear on the upper edges of the spacers 57, thereby supporting the platform at the unhinged side. At the same time, it will be appreciated, the platform 40 in lowered position holds the carriage in its extended configuration. A workman may ascend either of the ladders L1 and L2 and attain a working position on the platform plate 51.

The platform is reinforced at its underside, FIGS. 7 and 9, by trusses 56 of standard form. Preferably, a detachable railing 60, FIG. 9, is afforded, presenting a horizontal hand rail 61 and a pair of end supports 62. The end supports 62 serve to position the hand rails 61 at the desired elevation, and this may be easily accomplished by dimensioning and configuring the free ends 62E of the end supports to telescope into the upper ends of the hollow extender arms 41 as will be apparent in FIG. 9.

The primary objective as to utility in this instance is to enable a workman to hang or remove rugs at an elevated position. To do this the rolled rug is placed in the arms 65, FIG. 11, where the rug is supported a short distance below the rug rack arm or correspondingly below a pin bar attached to the wall to support rugs for display. When removing rugs they are simply dropped to the floor. Accordingly, a fixture is afforded under this objective, and comprises a pair of separate and independent arms 65, FIG. 11, each having at the upper end a hook or flange 66, FIG. 12, adapted to embrace the hand rail 61. The lower end of each arm 65 is dimensioned to set into a hole in the surface of the platform plate 51. Each arm 65 is provided with a forwardly extending cradle arm 68 which, as will be apparent in FIG. 12, is adapted to support a piece of rolled carpeting.

It will be seen from the foregoing that under the present invention a carriage is constructed from stabilizer members, upright members extending upward from the stabilizers, and stringer members extending horizontally between andjoined to the uprights by swivel joints. The members may therefore be extended and squared off so to speak to define a right angle parallelogram; or they may be folded into a tight nest enabling the carriage in its collapsed state to be easily moved through narrow spaces. The uprights have horizontal rungs affording a pair of ladders, and a workman may ascend either ladder to attain a platform at the top of the carriage. The platform is hinged on the carriage and when opened to its operative state itself becomes a brace which maintains the carriage in its extended or erected condition. When the platform is folded back to its inoperative position, the carriage may then be folded up.

The platform is sturdy, being reinforced by a truss at its underside, and a replaceable handrail may be used to support fixtures which afford a cradle for a rolled rug which the workman may partially unroll for hanging while he is on the platform.

It is evident then that the present construction presents a great deal of utility and this is further enlarged by supporting the platform on extender arms 41 which telescope into the tops of the uprights. The platform may therefore be hinged at one end to a pair of these arms and the other arms serve to support the opposite or free end of the platform.

Hence, while I have illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that this is capable of variation and modification within the purview of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A collapsible wheel mounted carriage comprising a pair of horizontal stabilizer members supporting the wheels of the carriage, upright members secured to the topside of the stabilizer arms and joined one to another by rungs to afford a ladder at one end of the carriage, horizontal spacer members at the sides of the carriage extending between the uprights and each connected thereto by a swivel joint so that said members collectively may be extended in the form of a right angle parallelogram or folded into an oblong parallelogram, and a hinged platform at the top of the carriage normally extended to operative position to both support a workman and to brace the carriage in its extended form, said platform being supported for vertical extension on extender arms in turn mounted for extensible adjustment on the uprights.

2. A carriage according to claim 1 having a detachable hand rail associated with the platform and detachable fixtures on the hand rail for holding a rolled carpet.

3. A carriage according to claim 1 in which the extender arms have apertures which register with an aperture in the corresponding upright at the adjusted position, and pins insertible in the registered apertures to hold the adjusted position. v

4. A carriage according to claim 3 in which the platform at one end is hinged to a pair of extender arms and in which the other pair of extender arms present supports for the free end of the platform.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 838,095 12/1906 Feller 182-l29 1,695,466 12/1928 OFriel 182-129 2,222,078 11/1940 Kroeger et al. 182-129 2,599,670 6/1952 Thomas 182152 2,834,526 5/1958 Paris 182-113 2,994,402 8/1961 Tyler 182-152 REINALDO P. MACHADO, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 182-113 

